Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The scope of cultural policy
- 3 The policy process
- 4 Arts policy
- 5 Cultural industries
- 6 Cultural heritage
- 7 Culture in urban and regional development
- 8 Tourism
- 9 Culture in the international economy
- 10 Cultural diversity
- 11 Arts education
- 12 Culture in economic development
- 13 Intellectual property
- 14 Cultural statistics
- 15 Conclusions
- References
- Name index
- Subject index
14 - Cultural statistics
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The scope of cultural policy
- 3 The policy process
- 4 Arts policy
- 5 Cultural industries
- 6 Cultural heritage
- 7 Culture in urban and regional development
- 8 Tourism
- 9 Culture in the international economy
- 10 Cultural diversity
- 11 Arts education
- 12 Culture in economic development
- 13 Intellectual property
- 14 Cultural statistics
- 15 Conclusions
- References
- Name index
- Subject index
Summary
Culture is smitten with counting and measuring; it feels out of place and uncomfortable with the innumerable; its efforts tend, on the contrary, to limit the numbers in all domains; it tries to count on its fingers.
(Jean Dubuffet, Asphyxiating Culture, 1986)Introduction
Sound policy-making in any area of public administration needs to be based on comprehensive and reliable data. This is especially true in the cultural policy arena, where the intricate structure and diverse operations of the cultural sector make data demands particularly complex. Statistics covering the volume and value of cultural output, levels of employment, cultural consumption and participation, public and private funding, and so on, are required for purposes such as:
describing the size of the cultural sector, its place in the economy and society, and the nature and extent of its functioning;
underpinning evidence-based policy formation, which depends both on raw data and on relevant analysis of those data;
monitoring and evaluation of the success or otherwise of cultural policies and programmes while they are being implemented or after they have been completed; and
comparing various items of data using intra- or internationally comparable statistics to assist, for example, in the benchmarking of performance standards.
Cultural statistics that are useful for these purposes can be derived from three sources. Firstly, official government statistical agencies that routinely gather and publish data on the economy and society are a major source of information about the arts and culture.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Economics of Cultural Policy , pp. 214 - 230Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2010